The Weekend Away

Apart from its lovely Croatian setting, the best parts of The Weekend Away include a pretty good showing from Leighton Meester and an intriguing first act. About one-thirds in, I realized that this would be nothing more than a formulaic thriller sans any deeper narrative arcs. And the film didn't attempt anything to prove me wrong. It uses the same tropes as a dozen similar murder-mystery thrillers before it. Some of them include adultery and voyeurism angles, a stranger who's unflinchingly ready to help, and a couple of throwaway twists. Where the film utterly fails is in showcasing the friendship between the protagonist and the murdered woman, not giving us enough material to even consider a deeper, more psychologically driven angle. The Weekend Away seems content sticking to its barebones, neither giving Meester a worthwhile outing nor being a pulpy little mystery.

This movie has one of the most gorgeous settings I've ever seen as Croatia really fits this who-done-it style mystery movie. I don't think I've watched a movie before with Croatia as the settint. The red-roofed, ancient buildings by the water in a small and compacted city makes a great setting for a mystery movie.

However, the movie itself I thought was okay, but no more than decent at best. It was your typical mystery movie with lots of suspected suspects and plot twists that essentially ends with the unexpected. Not really my type of movie as I find them all quite the same in their own way. I also always find that movies such as this one always lack suspense. With this being said, decent movie with a beautiful setting. Worth the watch!

If you go away for the weekend, you'd think it would be good for you. It usually is ... unless you go with a friend that ... well disppears on you. Or does she? That is the mystery to solve ... and a lot of stuff is being discovered while the friend is missing.

Having said that, the thriller aspect of the movie works partly. There are things that do not really work. And the very last twist is almost a bit too much ... especially because I reckon most see it coming anyway - or expect it to be more exact.

Acting is fine (again apart from that final twist that is a bit too on the nose) and if you don't have high expectations, this will satisfy your thrill needs ...

Nothing special, nothing the least bit original, nothing rememberable, made for T. V type script and dialogue. Basically just like 95% of every other film released the past few years.

A good old fashioned murder mystery set against a beautiful backdrop. It's come in for some criticism, but I personally really enjoyed it. Something almost a bit 60's TV show about the story, if you're a fan of movies like A Simple Favour, you'll enjoy this.

Plenty of twists, and they keep on coming, right up until the very end, by the end of the movie, you're unsure if you know what's happened, or if there are still further revelations.

Leighton Meester and Christina Wolf are both really good as the central characters, both are convincing and sincere.

Better than you may think, 7/10.